Climate Change

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the oral statement of 20 October 2008,  Official Report, column 23, on the European Council, what the evidential basis is for his statement that the United Kingdom cannot fulfil its climate change aspirations without nuclear power.

Mike O'Brien: Nuclear will be an important part of an affordable climate change policy for the UK. In the face of climate change and our 80 per cent. target, we need all low carbon energy technologies available in the mix. Not having nuclear as an option would increase the costs of delivering our energy goals and increase the risks of failing to meet our targets for reducing emissions. In the absence of nuclear power, and if carbon capture and storage is not a viable or technical option, the costs of generating the UK's electricity could increase by up to 40 per cent.
	Both the consultation document, "The Future of Nuclear Power" and the Nuclear White Paper are evidence bases for the Government's decision that it is in the public interest to give energy companies the option of investing in nuclear power stations. The Department published a cost-benefit analysis of nuclear power(1) at the time of the 2006 Energy Review. The recently published DECC energy and emissions projections(2) provide further support for these assumptions.

Climate Change

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what additional (a) personal and (b) financial resources his Department has allocated to addressing climate change in accordance with the undertaking given in the Written Ministerial Statement on 23 January 2008, Official Report, column 52 WS, on the new Strategic Framework.

David Miliband: In accordance with the new Strategic Framework for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), I have substantially increased the resources devoted to addressing climate change at the FCO. The Climate Change and Energy programme budget in the FCO's Strategic Programme Fund has been increased from £4.7 million in financial year 2007/08 to £10 million for financial year 2008/09, £16 million for financial year 2009/10 and £21 million for financial year 2010/11. Additionally, the FCO has increased the number of staff working to deliver climate change and energy objectives. A new financial resource of £0.8 million has been provided to create 19 new positions in London. An extra £5.7 million for diplomatic missions in priority countries has created 32.5 new positions for British diplomats on postings,and 73 positions for locally engaged members of staff.
	I have personally invested more time in this priority issue, stepping up the frequency of my discussions on climate change with counterparts and wider stakeholders and will continue to do so, in co-ordination with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, in advance of the critical Framework Convention on Climate Change of Parties at Copenhagen in December 2009.
	(1) http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file39525.pdf
	(2) http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file48514.pdf